Drive apparatus



DRIVE APPARATUS 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 11, 1955 INVENTOR.

April 23, 1957 w. FQ LoNGFlELD DRIVE APPARATUS 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 FiledMay 11, 1955 IN V EN TOR. W/L/AM LONGF/[LD BY Attorney DRIVE ArPARATUsWilliam F. Long-field, Warren, Ohio, assigner to The Fed` eral Machineand Welder Company,:WarrenOhio, 'a

corporation of Ohio Application May 11', v195`5, "S`e'i'al N0. 5

7 Claims, (Ctr/4444) The present invention relates nto drivev apparatus,more particularly to' apparatus for effecting twospeed operation of apress o'r other device, and the principal object of the invention is toprovidencw and improved apparatus of the character described. v

As is well-known in the art, high speed operation of drawing presses andthe like is limited by the fact that the drawing operation cannot beaccelerated beyond a certain rate of speed without tearing the materialbeing drawn. In the past, attempts have been made to increase th'eproduction of drawing presses by operating them at their optimum speedduring the drawing portion of the press cycle and` at a higher speedduring theyother portions of the press cycle preceding and subsequent tothe drawing portion. This theory of operation has proven practical;however, it is believed that the prior art 'mechanisms devised for thispurpose have not been entirely satisfactory.

One of the earliest attempts to accomplish multiple speed operation ofvpresses andthe like 'is-l disclosed in Patent No. 1,060,662 issued toBauroth. The ca'm mechanism disclosed in this patent extremely'f-bulkyand is' unsuit'ed for high'speed operations and/ or heavy duty, longstroke presses.

A later approach to the problem is disclosed-ih Patent No. 2,073,239issued to Byerlein ',Th e Byerleinconstruction is' more practical thanthat'v of B auroth; vhowever, Byerlein requires' cumbersome reductiongearing which'is noisy and is troblesonreto maintain since the" gearingis subjected to considerable shock, Moreover, since the speed ratios ofthe Byerlein ydevice are established lby gearing, changing suchfratiosrequires that the heavy reduction gearing be changed. This, it will beunderstood, is an expensive, time consuming operation.

The present invention possesses none vof the `disagi; vantages of theprior art deviees mentionedand since it employs a novel principle ofoperation which utilizesonly that gearing vfound necessary in ordinary,single speed presses, it is easily' adapted to conventionalpressdesigns. Other advantages will readily become apparent from a` study ofthe following description and from the drawings appended hereto. 'In'the drawings accompanying'- this specification. and forming apart ofthis application' there is shown, for purpose of illustration,anembodimen't which the'inven# tion'ma'y assume, and in these' drawings:

Figurel isa front elevational view 'of' a pressentbo'dy'ing'tliepresen't'invention,

`,Figure 2` is' a top planview,

'Figur'es3' and 4 are enlarged,` complementary.vievvs'f ,W n65joinedtogether at the brealcdinev to form the; :o1"npl 'etedl takenalong line x-'-x' of Figure 2 andadapted t'o b'e section; and

Figure 5 is' a schematic diagram of c'onibination electrical-iluidcircuit found= suitable for' controlling operation of the invention andfor'ccordinatin'g'itsoperaiJ tion with the-press with whichitisjemployed;l

' speed is desirousl ice A 2 employed with a drawing press, it is to be'clearly under-l stood that this use is illustrative only and' that theiuvenf' tion may be advantageously employed with any other suitableapparatus whose' operation at "Figure 1 illustrates a conventionalfpressfl0havingja v rewcfiprocable slide l 1 'connectedtq a 'cr an kshaft 12 b'y' means of a connecting rod 1 3. The crankshaft '12.is suit-"alirly` journalled .inf' the frame of th e press ,andi rotation of theformer -reciprocates the slide 11 toward and, away fro'rn the bed 14 ofthe press.; AlthoughnQt '-'showm'th'e fb'ed 14 may carry one'part of af91l1lig .dif '\vhilfthe' slide 11 may cairy a complementary/ part jofrthe die.;A Se: cured to onek end vof crankshaft 12 is a bull gearv 145which is adapted eshwith a suitable driVef pinion which, in conventionalsingle speed press constructions, is usually carried" by a suitablelcountershaft.A The countershaft usually carries a flywheel for storingenergy and the countershaft `is adapted to berotatedV by any' suit'f`able'ineans.

In the embodiment ofthe, invention herein disclosed,` the conventionalcountershaft is replaced by a drive'- sh'aft 16 mounted on the press bymeans of suitable brackets 17, 18. Shaft carries a. drive pinion-19jwhich m'e'sh'es with bull gear 1 5 and, in the' present'construcf"tion, brackety 18 provides a't least a partial guard for the'gears. .NAsI best shown in Figures 3 ar1 d 4, housing l17 rotatably support the'shaft 1 6 by means o f an anti-jfrictio-11I bearing 20 while housing 1 8rotatablysupports the "shaft by means of amantifriction bearing 21.5 I nthepresent embodiment, shaft 16' supports Va* pair o f spaeed' ywheels22, y23 eac'h'nof which-is' independently vrota t' 1 ble Awith respectto the' straft.'V The -flywheels are-.adaptedjtofb' rotated atdifferent.spee'l'al means later to be disclosed',- and each ispreferably ofahdilferent'size,

Secured yto ilywheel 2 2 (see Figure` 4) gby suitable bolts', areaxially 'spa'cedlapartnd Walls 2 4, 2 5 and" an. in'ter'nled iatev wallEnd'fwal-llly is rotatably mounted en shaft 16'by 'means of abearingl27whileintermediatewall 2 6 is mounted o'r i' tl ie'- shaft bymeans of ,abearing 2s. shaft 16 'terminates' intermediate wausgzs, 26.for a purpose"to bec'onie clear. End `wall 25 is formed" to p r'ovide yan inwardlyfacing cylinder portion 29 in which aQpiston` member' 30 `having atransverse face 31jis' reciprocable axially lo f thel shaft. Means areiprovided -32 and end wall 2 5 toyieldably urge the terial. For apurposeto be seen, the youter periphery of disk M is formedto provideteeth, or sp lines, j whichnie'sh with teeth formed in' the innerperiphery of airing member 36 secured"t o end v'v'all 25 by,mean s ofbolts 37. This construction locks disk 34 agai n st rotation :relativeto' the tlywheel but permits the disk a limited amount ofaxlialmovement.' In'oder to reducethe numbei' or different parts, disk 35 issirnilar to disk and 1 isi'rnount'ed in a similar manner (but againstintermediate wall 426) ever1 though it is'unne'ces'sa'ry to provide foraxial movement of this disk.

more than one' l having* axiallyIsraicge'ii,A oppositely facing surfacesavea-tsv' ber 38 has an inner periphery formed to provide teeth, orsplines, which mesh with teeth formed in the outer periphery of a collar39 securely keyed to the adjoining end of shaft 16. Accordingly,friction member 33 is locked to shaft 16 for rotation therewith but ismovable axially of the shaft for reasons to appear.

End wall 25 provides a passage 40 which communicates with the interiorof the cylinder formed by portion 29 of this wall. A suitable conduit(not shown) connects passage 40 with a fluid control valve later tobedescribed, any-suitable swivel connection being interposed betweenthe-conduit and end wall 25 to permit the flywheel to rotate relative tothe conduit.

Operation of flywheel 22 and the above-described clutch mechanismcarried thereby is as follows: Assuming that flywheel 22 is beingrotated by means later to be disclosed and that the parts carried by theflywheel are in the position shown, shaft 16 will remain stationarysince disks 34, 35 are out of engagement with friction member 38. Iffluid under pressure is now admitted to thefcylinder formed in end wall25, piston member 30 will be shifted to the left against the resiliencyof springs 33. Disk 34 and friction member 38 will also'be moved axiallyto the left until the friction member is tightly clamped between the twodisks 35, 34. This will lock flywheel 22 and shaft 16 together and thuscause the shaft to rotate with the flywheel.

Shaft 16 will be disengaged from flywheel 22 by exhausting the fluidfrom the cylinder provided by end wall 25. This will permit springs 33to move piston 30 to the right to thereby effect disengagement betweenfriction member`38 and disks 34, 35 and thereupon permit the flywheel torotate relative to the shaft.

' Referring now to Figure 3, flywheel 23 is similar to flywheel 22 (withthe exception of size). Therefore, corresponding parts are identified bythe same reference characters but with the suffix a added. Because ofits size, flywheel 23 requires more support than does flywheel 22;accordingly, end wall 25a is provided with an outwardly directed axialextension which provides a stub shaft 41 coaxial with shaft 16 androtatable in a bearing 42 carried by a bracket 43 secured to the pressframe. Since the left side of flywheel 23 is rotatably carried bybracket 43, intermediate wall 26a is not sec ured directly to shaft 16as isintermediate wall 26. Instead, wall 26a is apertured at 44 to passshaft 16.

To facilitate assembly and disassembly by maintaining flywheel 23generally in alignment with shaft 16 while bracket 43 is being installedor removed, aperture 44 is only slightly larger than shaft 16 so thatthe intermediate wall 26a can support the left end of the flywheel atsuch times. Since the clearance between wall 26a and shaft 16 is slight,a ring 45 of suitable bearing metal may be interposed between the walland the shaft 4to protect the shaft against possible damage.

Securely keyed to shaft 16 intermediate flywheels 22, 23 is a drum 46against the periphery of which a brake shoe' 47 is adapted to bear. Asgenerally diagrammatically shown in Figure 3, brake shoe 47 is carriedfor movement toward and away from the drum by the piston 48 of a fluidcylinder 49. The brake shoe is preferably resiliently biased toengagement with the drum by any suitable means such as by means of aspring 50 interposed between the shoe and the cylinder. A conduit 51connects the rod end of fluid cylinder 49 with a source of fluidpressure as will later be disclosed.

As previously mentioned, each flywheel 22, 23 is adapted to beindependently driven and, in the presently disclosed embodiment and asbest shown in Figure 2, separate motors are employed to drive theflywheels. Flywheel 22 is adapted to be driven by an electric motor 52while flywheel 23 is adapted to be driven by an electric motor 53. It ispreferably to connect motors 52, 53 with their respective flywheels bymeans of drive belts 54 running in grooves in therespective tlywheelsand over suitable sheaves carried by the motor shafts. This type ofdrive eliminates noisy gears and tends to reduce shock because of theresiliency of the belts. Moreover, in the event it is desired to varythe speed rat-io between the flywheels, it is only necessary to changethe size of the sheave on one and/ or both of the motor shafts. Whilethe present embodiment employs two drive motors, it is to be clearlyunderstoodthat a single motor could be employed to drive the llywheels.For example, a motor having a shaft extending from each end could beemployed,y each shaft 'extension being adapted to drive a respective oneof the tlywheels.

In theembodiment herein disclosed, drive motors 52, 53 operate atgenerally the same speed; accordingly, since the motor sheaves are thesame size, while flywheel 22 is materially smaller than flywheel 23, thelatter flywheel will be driven at a slower speed than will flywheel 22.

Referring to schematic diagram, Figure 5, there is shown a camshaft 55which is movable in accordance with movement of the slide 11 of thepress. Camshaft 55 may be driven by any suitable member which moves in afixed ratio with the press slide. For example, the camshaft could beconnected to crankshaft 12, drive shaft 16, or even driven by motion ofthe slide itself, the only requirement being that the camshaft rotate(at least in the present embodiment) one revolution for each stroke ofthe press. For a purpose to be pointed out, camshaft S5 carries aninterrupter cam 56 having a lobe 57 and a speed control cam 53 having alobe 59.

`A spring biased, sloenoid operated, fluid valve having an inlet, anoutlet and an exhaust is connected to a spring biased, solenoidoperated, fluid valve 61 having an inlet, an exhaust and outlets A andB. The outlet of valve 60 is connected to the inlet of valve 61 by meansof a conduit 62 while conduit 51 connects conduit 62` with brakecylinder49. The inlet of valve Y6i) is adapted tobe connected to a source offluid pressure while outlet A of valve 61 is adapted to be connectedv tothe interior of the clutch cylinder carried by flywheel 22 and outlet Bis adapted to be connected to the interior of the clutch cylindercarried by flywheel 23.

The solenoid actuator of valve 60 is connected across power Vlines L1and L2 by means of a circuit 63 which includes normally open contacts 64of a relay 65 and normally open contacts 66, 67 of respective actuatingswitches 68, 69. The actuating coil vof relay is connected across thepower lines by means of a circuit 70 which includes normally closedcontacts 71, 72 of respective actuating Aswitches 68, 69. A shuntcircuit 73 is provided around contacts 71, .72 through normally opencontacts 74 of relay 65 and through the contacts of a normally closedswitch 75 which is adapted to be i opened by lobe 57 of cam 56. Thesolenoid actuator cause valve 60 is (le-energized, and in this position,the' llet B of valve 61 will be in communication with the exhaust ofrthis valve while outlet A will be in communication with the inletsincethe valve is de-energized. No fluid will flow to the clutch offlywheel 22, however, be-

inlet is blocked from the outlet and the latter is connected to exhaust.When the valve 60 is de-energized, the cylinder 49 is also connected toexhaust by reason of its connection to the outlet 62 of valve 60, sothat spring 50 holds the brake applied to shaft 16 and thus holds slide11 -of the press in its uppermost position, as herein disclosed, or inany pre-selected position depending upon the angular adjustment of cam56.

-Assuming that drive motors 52, 53 are running, the

operator may close a switch (not shown) to establish I flow of currentthroughl lines L1 and L2, which inturn will cause current to flow'through relay 65 via 'circuit 70. .andnormallyaclosed contacts `7 1, 72rof-factuating switches 68,169. Flow. ofi-.current `thrQl'Igh-the relaywlll closedcontacts 64 in .circuitlf63 and contacts y74 in-circuit 73.Since contacts66, 67 of switches 68,-69 arenormally open, no currentwill ow through-circuit 63 vat this time so that valve '60 will remainde-energized. \Note that losing of contacts 74 will ca-use current to owthrough shuntcircuit 73 to thereupony hold relay 65 energized.

For safety purposes, it-is necessary. thatthe operator depress bothswitches 68, 69 in :order to effectoperation of thepressand, normally,the yoperator will be required to. operate one of these switches withone hand and the other switch with ythe other hand'.- .-Whenntheoperator closes both switches 68,:69,` contac"ts 71,` 72 will be opened;however, since shunt circuit .73 ist-completed, :relay 654 willremainenergized. rClosing switchesv 68, 69 will close contacts 66, 567wandcurrent will therefore flow through circuit 63 Ato energize solenoidvalve/60. When this valve is energized, its outlet willQbej-placed incommunication withitsinlet and fluid underpressure will thereupon ow tothe inlet of valve 61Vvia'conduit162. Since valve 61 is not energized atthis time, `tl'uid will ow through the valve from its inlet toaoutlet 'Aand thence to the c lutchy carried by ilywheel 22.v

yFluid will also ow to cylinder 49 thus withdrawing brake shoe 47 fromengagement with drum 46. Flow of fluid to the clutch carried by flywheel22 will engage this llywheel with shaft 16 andy thus eiect rotation ofthis shaft and downward movement of slide 11 as before described. Sinceflywheel 22 is rotating at a relatively high speed, slide 11 will movedownwardly at a relatively high speed and, as before described, camshaft55 will be rotated in the direction of the arrow (Figure insynchronization with the slide.

As slide 11 approaches the working portion of its stroke, lobe 59 ofspeed controIcamSS will 'close the contacts of switch 77` Vand thereuponenergize solenoid valve 61. Energization lof va1v`e-f61 will connectoutlet A with the exhaust to release thesclutch carried'by'ywheel 22 andsimultaneouslyaconnect outlet B with the inlet to engage the clutchcarrie'djby flywheel 23. With flywheel 23 engaged with shaft 16-theslide will progress at a slower speed so that` the proper-'drawingaction can take place. .Us

At the completion of thefdrawingoperation, camshaft 55 will have rotatedsufficiently thatl lobe 59 of cam 58 will no longer hold the contactsvof switch 77 closed. This will deenergize solenoid'valve 61 and onceagain engage the clutch carried by :ywheel 22 and disengage the clutchcarried by flywheel 23. vAccordingly, slide 11 will once again move athigh speed.

As the slide approaches itsauppermost or other preselected stoppingposition,l'obe 57 of interrupter cam 56 will momentarily open thecontacts of switch 75. This will break shunt circuit 73 and de-energizerelay 65. Deenergization of relay 65 will open contacts 64 in circuit 63and contacts 74 in circuit 73.4 With circuit 63 open, solenoid 6ft willbe de-energized to close this valves inlet from its outlet and toconnect its 'outlet to exhaust. This will disengage the clutch carriedby flywheel 22 and also permit spring Si) to apply the brake to shaft 16to thereupon stop the slide at the top of its stroke.

It will be noted that although the contacts of switch 75 are onlymomentarily broken, relay 65 will remain de-energized until such time asthe operator releases both actuating switches 68, 69 to permit thelatter to return to the position shown in the drawing. Only when thelatter occurs, will relay 65 be re-energized to prepare the circuits forthe next cycle which will commence when switches 68, 69 are once againdepressed by the operator. Accordingly, it will be understood that thehereindisclosed apparatus provides for onestroke, non-repeat operationof a press or the like at relatively low speed during part of the presscycle and at relatively high speed during the remainder of the cycle,

vention possesses considerable flexibility-ankliitsistoibefl noted thatone or the other of the llywheel'drivesmv be employed alone to operatethe pressinaconv'entonl' manner and to permit repair of one of thegdr'iveswithot stoppage of production. l I In vew of the foregoing .itwill; be kapparents"to those skilled in the art that -I haveaccomplished fat-least the principal object of my invention and Sitwillalsof-he parent to those skilled in the artztha't 'thevernbiciirneiit'- herein described may be variously changed and.

without departing from the spirit -of theinlvetion, and,

that the invention is capable of uses and has jadvantge'sf not hereinspecifically described,;h'enceA Tit'I \iJill.-l:zap" y preciated thatthe herein disclosed embodiment isl illus'- trative only, and that myinveritionds not limited't-heretb'.

I claim: g Y l. A powerV press having a. reciprocable slide,fa'c"rankshaft having drive connection with said slide .to effect:

reciprocation thereof, a shaft rotatably supportedby'said press andhaving driving connection `with said'lcrankf" shaft, a pair of iywheels,eachvof lconsiderablemass and.

eachmounted on said shaftl for rotation-relative-theret, means forrotating said ywheels on said shaftone y1- wheel rotating at a greaterspeed than the other; andy clutch means for said flywheels and.selectively operable'- to engage one or the other of saidywheelswithf'said shaft and thereby provide rotation of said-shaftand'conw-K: sequent rotation of said crankshaft and-'reciprocation of.

said slide at a speed governed bythe engaged flywheel;

2. A power presshaving a reciprocable` slide, avcrankshaft having driveconnection with said slide to effect reciprocation thereof, a shaftrotatably supported` by said press and having driving 'connection withsaid. crankshaft, a pair of flywheels of dilierentY diameten, eachAmounted on said shaft for rotation relative thereto, means. l

for rotating said ywheels on said shaft and-constructed and arrangedwhereby the larger ywheelis driveniax' a lower rotational speed, Iand aclutch for :.each'offsaid tlywheels and selectively operable toengage-arespective'-I tlywheel with said shaft, whereby saidcrankshaftis rof tated and said slide is reciprocated selectivelyatfsjpeeds governed by the speed of the engaged llywheel.`

3. A power press having a reciprocable slide, a" crankshaft having driveconnection with said slideto effect reciprocation thereof, a shaftrotatably supported by said press and having driving connection withsaid crankshaft, a pair of iiywheels mounted on said shaft for rotationrelative thereto, drive motor means for said flywheels, belt and pulleyconnections between said drive motor means and said ilywhecls wherebysaid lywheels may be rotated at different speeds, and clutch means forsaid ywheels and selectively operable to engage one or the other of saidflywheels with said shaft and thereby provide rotation of said shaft andconsequent rotation of said crankshaft and reciprocation of said slideat a speed governed by the engaged ywheel.

4. A power press having a reciprocable slide, and means forreciprocating said slide, including a pair of rotatably mountedflywheels of different diameters, a separate drive motor for each ofsaid lywheels, each drive motor having a pulley on its driving shaft anda belt engaged over such pulley and over the periphery of a respectiveflywheel whereby said pulleys may be related in size to drive the largerflywheel at a slower rotational speed, and a clutch for each of saidywheels and selectively operable to engage a respective flywheel andthereby provide for reciprocation of said slide at a speed governedhytheengaged ywheel.

. A Y. 7 f5. A drawing press having a stationary die supporting pprtirmAand a. reciprocable die supporting portion movable' v"through'a cycle atone speed during drawing operation and aty a higher speed preceding andsubsequent to said drawing operation, comprising a pair ofrotatablymounted flywheels, one rotating at a higher speed than the otherclutchmeans for said ywheels and selectively operable to engage one or theother of saidywheels and establish a drive connection with saidreciprocable diesupporting portion, and control means operable duringselected portions of the cycle of said reciprocable die supportingportion to engage said clutch means with the slower rotating ywheelduring the drawing'operation of said press and to disengage said clutchmeansfrom said slower flywheel and engage said clutch means withthefaster rotating ywheel during the time preceding and subsequent to saiddrawing operation.

6'.v Adx'awing press having a stationary die supporting portion and areciprocable die supporting portion movable through a cycle at one speedduring drawing operation and at'a higher speed preceding and subsequentto saiddrawing operation, comprising a pair of rotatably mounted ywheelsand means for driving said lywheels, olie flywheel being of greaterdiameter than the other and'rotating at a slower speed, a clutch foreach of said ywheelsrand selectively operable to engage a respectivey'wheel'and establish a drive connection with said reciprocable diesupporting portion, and control means pera'blefduringselected portionsof the cycle of said reciprocable die supporting portion to engage oneclutch with the larger and slower'rotating ywheel during the drawingoperation of said press and to disengage said one clutch and engage theother clutch with the smaller and faster rotating flywheel during thetime preceding and subsequent to said drawingoperation.

7. A drawing press having a lstationary die support` ing portion and areciprocable die supporting portion movable through a cycle at one speedduring drawing operation and at a higher speed preceding and subsequentto said drawing operation, comprising a shaft rotatably mounted on saidpress and having driving connection with said reciprocable diesupporting portion, a pair of ilywheels of differentdiameters, eachmounted on said shaft for ro-` portions of the cycle of saidreciprocable die supportingv portion to operate the clutch associatedwith the larger and slower rotating ywheel to engage such ywheel withsaid shaft during the drawing operation of said press, and beingoperable to operate the other clutch associated with the smaller andfaster rotating flywheel to engage such ywheel with said shaft duringthe time preceding and subsequent to said drawing operation whilerendering said rst clutch inelective.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNlTED STATES PATENTS2,488,892 Arzt Nov. 22, 1949" 2,557,896 Soule et al. June 19, 19512,577,641 Wissman Dec. 4, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS Great Britain Oct. l5,

